Pandora: 2:00 is an arbitrary line, indeed, but so was the 4:00 mile. I have a lot of arbitrary lines I would like to cross: under 24:00 for the 5K, under 50:00 for the 10K, under 1:50 for the Half, and under 4:00 for the Marathon. I don't think I''ll achieve any of these this year, but hopefully next. And after that? Well, given my age, I realize I can't go on improving for ever, so try to stay under those arbitrary lines for as long as possible, and improve my age grade performance (currently around 58%)

Jan / Miele: there's an 8K on Thanksgiving, a 5-mile Turkey Trot on 11/30, 5K on 12/7 and a 10K on 21/14. Not sure if I will do all four, but at least two or three. I don't think running a 8K / 5m at two day's interval will be a big deal, but we'll see.

For the Gore-tex, I'll let you know if I take the plunge

Npaden: great PR

Me: 15M @9:45 this morning. Not too bad considering the 5m tempo on Saturday. Helped by listening to "British History" podcasts - fall of the Roman Empire and beginning of the Dark Ages with rape, pillage and plunder. I find it less dangerous listening to podcasts rather than music, as you can still hear what is going on around you

Pandora -- I think it would be possible for you to hit 8:30/mile in 3.5 months... but the faster you get, the slower you improve, so getting to 7:30/mile probably won't come quite so easily!! (I ran a hilly 1:51 in March and a flat 1:44 in May... and I'm terrified that I'm not going to be able to hit 1:40 when I shoot for that in Februrary!!)

Lurch -- self-loathing can be a great motivator, but I wouldn't call it self-loathing... that doesn't sound good. I can't think of a more positive word for it right now, but I'm sure one will come to me at some point. How awesome does it feel to have run that far?!

Nathan -- great RR, congrats on the PR!

miele -- ooooh, new shoes!! I'd say 18 miles is a good indication that they'll work for you, but hey, what do I know... except that the "cheaper" model AlterG costs just under $35,000. (Damn, why did I go to graduate school?! I would have been much happier spending that money on an AlterG than a stupid piece of paper.)

Jan -- loving runs is good! Personally, I like 5Ks because even if they hurt more, they end faster. That's why I hate 10Ks -- they hurt just as much but take twice as long.

2 ft -- well, that sure sounds like something that would put some pep in your step!

me -- I took a social media break for the last week because it was cruel and unusual punishment to shove NYCM in my own face like that when 90% of these people have no freaking idea how lucky they are, and my body is being its usual shitty self. So, yeah. My shin clearly isn't fractured, but in return for that getting somewhat better, my piriformis decided to act up. Running is generally inadvisable when you're carrying around narcotics with you because of the pain, so I missed a speed run last week. I made it up the next day with an easy run of the same distance, and I learned that I actually can stay within my prescribed easy pace -- the fear of injury is a great motivator, it turns out. I actually managed to run 9 today, and my piriformis was okay (who cares if I can't sit for more than five minutes as long as I can run?), but my knee was starting to get cranky toward the end. I demand a new body.

chasing 21:40

pcaharrier

posted: 11/11/2013 at 11:37 AM

Thanks for the well wishes on my race, everyone. I might do a full race report later, but here's the quick version: met my goal and ran a 3:41:50; went out too fast (stupid fast, as in "so stupid I would kick myself today if it weren't for the soreness all up and down my legs") and had a pretty tough second half; weather was cool, sunny, and windy; course was nice and the staff and volunteers were outstanding.

2014 goals: 2,000 | 52.5 | Marathon PR | Skip the injuries again

2015 goals: 2,000 | TBD | No major injuries

miele

Godzilla

posted: 11/11/2013 at 12:17 PM

Jan- So glad to hear you're enjoying your runs again! I think next year we should both focus on kicking some ass in the shorter distances. I can't imagine taking 10 minutes off my marathon time much less an hour. Talk about your success stories! You know, I hear so many success stories in connection with the Hansons' plan that I'm really tempted to go after my original goal (which is 'only' a 5 minute improvement) but that's scary to me. It seems like I read a long time ago that wearing different shoes helps all the little muscles in the feet. They don't get used to one shoe and in turn that helps prevent injury. Whatever, I just found it a great excuse to buy more shoes.

Pandora- Just noticed your PRs in your sig. It looks like you improved in a relatively short period of time between your 10k and HM. Good things are coming your way!

2ft- Are you kidding me?!? I would've never guessed that Dunkin' Donuts provided those hats...what a great idea. And here I was searching Asics, Adidas, Nike, etc. Funny that all those races are different distances. I'm sure you'll have fun no matter which combination you choose. I've never run with a podcast but the Fall of The Roman Empire sounds heavy. Extremely interesting, though. I don't think I would want to listen to that, though, considering all the parallels with today's society. I'd get depressed. The Gore-tex sounds like a wise investment to me.

blue- $35,000 is a big chunk of change! Too bad you can't find a used one on Craigslist. Yeah, that education was a total waste. That's good news about the non-broken shin. Not so good about the other pain. Maybe you should go on a diving trip? I'm guessing it's less rough on the body? This is coming from a non-diver so if I'm mistaken about that I wouldn't be surprised. And speaking of shoes...have you ever tried the Brooks T7? They look nice.

PC!!!!!!!! Geez Luiz!!!! That's spectacular! And, yes, we need an RR! With all the details, please. Don't leave anything out. Obviously you're disappointed with having gone out too fast but don't dwell on that. You just ran a marathon in an amazing time. Celebrate!!!

me- I love it that everyone's been having great races lately! So inspiring. I can't remember the last time one of us has had a bad race. I'm about to go out for 9 or so.

10K: 47:12* / 13.1: 1:50:56 / 26.2: 3:53:48

pcaharrier

posted: 11/12/2013 at 10:16 AMmodified: 11/12/2013 at 1:50 PM

My buddy from work and I walked to the shuttles around 5:30 a.m. It was cool and windy (low 50s, I'd guess) and still was by the time they dropped me off at the marathon start about 30 minutes later (with still more than an hour until the start at 7:20). My long-sleeved tech shirt and gloves didn't do much good, but I knew I would warm up once we got started. I ate a GU about half an hour before the start and lined up toward the back of Corral A (thinking that would help me go out slow). I had my watch ad pace band on my left wrist and my phone with Runkeeper on my right arm (I turned it on as we got started, but kept the sound turned off). They let the elites go and started Corral A about 30 seconds later.

Apparently, lining up toward the back of the corral did not have the intended effect. The first 6 or 7 miles were on back streets through subdivisions in and around Kitty Hawk and Kill Devil Hills. Neighborhood streets are where I do most of my training runs so there was a familiarity to it. Goal pace was 8:34, but I was way, way ahead of that. I know the splits that Runkeeper has aren't quite right, but there are a bunch of 7:30s and 7:40s in there. Not good. I told myself several times "You need to slow down NOW," but I guess my body just didn't respond like I needed it to. I got through mile 5 in under 40 minutes which would have been great in a half marathon, but here, not so much.

Running around the Wright Brothers Memorial around mile 8 was pretty neat and there was a good crowd out there too. There was a trail portion of a few miles around miles 10-13 that was also a nice change of pace from the roads (and some folks who apparently drove all the way from Ohio to volunteer an aid station stocked with bananas and banana bread). It ran near Jockey's Ridge State Park which (I think) is billed as the tallest sand dune on the eastern seaboard. It was a little hilly, but the variety was nice compared to what I knew was coming later. By the halfway point I was 10-11 minutes ahead of goal pace. At that point, although I wasn't feeling it yet, I had a pretty good idea that the second half of the race was not going to be nearly as fun as the first half.

I made it through about mile 17 or 18 before I started to feel bad. My left hamstring felt a little funny; it wasn't painful, really, but it didn't feel quite right either. I had been walking at most of the aid stations up to that point (to make sure I ate the gels and got some liquid in), but now I was walking at aid stations to also take a break from running. From about 19-23 I had to slow down a lot and even walked a bit in between aid stations (and I had those nagging thoughts about stopping), but I kept moving (albeit considerably slower that my goal pace).

Going by what Runkeeper has, miles 21-24 went 9:22, 10:29, 10:38, and 10:10. Those miles were also mostly run along the side of US-158 and by this time the sun was out. It wasn't hot, but this part of the course was the most monotonous and also probably the windiest. The Washington-Baum Memorial Bridge sits right around Mile 23-24 and it was a beast. I didn't stop, but I did walk part of it.

The crowds picked up around mile 25 or so and I think that helped me pick up the pace a little right at the end. Runkeeper had miles 25 and 26 at 9:07 and 9:00. At the finish I was focused on powering through the finish line and only glanced at the clock long enough to see that it was 3:4X:XX, so I was pretty sure that I met my goal. Now that I think about it, I don't remember what time I had on my wristwatch when I stopped it (and I didn't remember to stop Runkeeper until I was through the chute and sitting down).

Race staff loaded me up with my medal, a visor, water, Gatorade, and some coconut water/orange juice thing I had never tried before. I didn't see any benches so I sat down on the curb to get some fluids in me before meeting up with my friend from work. I didn't think I was going to be able to get up again from the curb, but somehow I managed. At that point, my whole leg felt like I was trying to stretch to touch my toes, not a pleasant feeling. The ball of my right foot also had some sharp pain.

I limped over to meet my friend and he insisted that I eat something. Fortunately, it was only after we met up that I felt a little light-headed. I just took a knee, figuring that it was much better to pass out from that height than from a standing position. That, fortunately, passed relatively quickly, and we found a spot to sit down where I managed to get down part of a hamburger bun (they were serving pulled pork, but I didn't know how my stomach would handle that at that point). I limped back to my friend's car (which he had mercifully driven over from our hotel after he finished the half marathon) and got/fell in to go back to the hotel and shower before heading back home.

The folks at Outer Banks Sporting Events put on a good race and I very well might go back next year. Next time (and I almost can't believe I'm already thinking about a next time) I hope I can learn from this race and stick to my goal pace. I think that will both make for a better time and a more pleasant experience.

EDIT: I almost forgot about the side stitches. I haven't had any for the better part of a year, but in those tough miles from 18-24 they came and went. That certainly didn't make things easier, but I told myself not to stop or slow down because that wouldn't make them go away.

Wow PC what a great race report - looks like you smashed all your goals for the year! Which training plan did you follow? You ran a great race - congrats!

Welcome Pandora - Great way to tackle that 2 hour goal! Good for you!

DocJen - Your race report is so inspiring - Congrats on the BQ - you'll be in my neck of the woods in 2015 :-) All your hard work has paid off!

Miele - 74 miles for a week - wow that is really getting it done! Marathon training is an entire different level - Seems as though you are really killing the workouts though!

Lurch - How many 20+ milers will you do in a training cycle. I am again debating a marathon and just trying to get a feel of what will be on the agenda.....with a half the long runs are so much more manageable....I admire all of you that tackle the full.

Stever - Glad the knees aren't giving you any more grief.

Npaden - great race report - you ran a great paced race. I agree with you about fueling in a half. In the two I ran I had a couple of chews at mile 9 - but I honestly think it is all mental in a half - I don't think I really needed it. I think some people might - but everyone is different - I actually find trying to eat/drink while racing to be quite difficult and at times detrimental - I can barely swallow a sip of water - but like I said everyone is different and should try things prior to race day.

Blue - my husband is wishing for an AlterG too - he's going on 7 weeks of no running due to a torn tendon in his knee....he been able to bike and swim - but decided to listen to the doc and give running a rest. Sorry that your body is not cooperating -

ME - Took last week easy to recoup from the half - it was hilly and my legs were VERY sore - I won't write a long race report, mostly because I really cannot recall in detail like others can - but I will say that I ran the first 4 miles too fast - the next 4 miles were VERY hilly (I almost blacked out at the top of one of the hills, but luckily kept on moving) and I just held on for the last 5 miles. The last two miles of the race I was pushing - but just could not turn it over. I wanted badly to break 1:35 - but as I didn't start my watch at the gun I had no idea what the total running time was (no clocks on the course) - Not that I think I would have been able to go 26 seconds faster - I am happy with the race - and will try to learn about holding back in the beginning. I *may* run one last half for the year on December 8th....but will wait until closer to decide. I won't run it in a blizzard - or sub 15 degrees - But I have it in my sights.

Wow, there has been some great racing going on! Huge congratulations to Jen, PCA, and npaden! Tara- Sounds like you ran hard as well!

Pandora- Welcome! I would say that sounds like an awful lot of improvement in a short amount of time. If I have a great HM in a couple weeks, I will be about 20 second/mile faster than my race 7 months ago. That's not to say you goal not doable, but I have noticed that as I get faster, a difference of 10 sec/mile feels more like 30-45 seconds a mile difference felt when I was slower. But if you enjoy training and running, then hopefully it will be a good experience no matter how long it takes to get there, right?

Everyone else- Hiya! Sorry that I got behind.

me- Things are still going well. Ran my last LR on a treadmill last week, and had my last real speed workout yesterday. It was sort of a Hudson mashup - 6 minutes at 5K pace, 3 minutes recovery, then 2 x 1.5 miles at HM/10K pace with 4 minute recoveries. If I'd have been thinking, I'd have moved the 5K paced interval to the end to increase the challenge. In any case, I totally nailed the workout. Held 7:54 comfortably for the 5K pace, then the HMP/10K interval felt too easy at 8:32. So I ran the last interval as a progression, averaging 8:14 pace. The 8:32 honestly felt like a solid HMP for me. Hopefully it still feels like that on race day!

Jan26.2 – its nice that you are recovering very well from the busy racing season and your aches and pains are going away.

Miele – its always exciting to get new running shoes. Hopefully you get PR in your Kinvara 3.

You guessed it correct. My BIL played on a couple of teams in Europe.

Npaden – congratulations in running great half and getting PR

Wolfwalker23 – you are super quick even in long runs. What was the last time that your LR was slower than 9 min/mile?

Me – we went to east coast to attain a wedding. Wife went to Charleston for school and we extended our trip to hangout in the city. It was my first time in Charleston and I enjoyed running near water for a couple of times.

Pandora - Yes I ran the All Women and One Lucky Guy in Newburyport. It was a well run race - congrats on your time! Are you going to run Hyannis in February? I am going to maybe run a half in Gloucester on December 8th :-)

Ready, go.

EdithRevisited

If you ask

posted: 11/13/2013 at 4:09 PM

I am so out of the loop, which is strange as life has been so loopy here at home...

pandora - working towards the sub 2 in 3.5 months is a good goal. And if it doesn't happen, there is always another half to run. My first half was a 2:20 and then 4 months later I ran a 2:06. It took me a number of races to get below 2.

nathan and harrier - loved the reports. Loved the details. Thanks for sharing and congrats.

Miele, blue, jan, Zelanie, and the rest of the gang - Hello!

Me - ran an decent 9 miles on Sunday morning, keeping at around a 9m/m whilst chatting with my bro. Today is an easy 6, then 2 on Friday, then it's Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!!!! I'm thinking about staying around the 4:15 pace group and leaving them after mile 20ish if I feel okay. I really want to beat 4:15, as my training has been totally upheaved so my 4 hr goal has been postponed until next year.

All/any advice from you fine group of runners is truly appreciated. Seriously, talk to me people...

Wow, small world! And so inspiring to hear your time when I know exactly what the course was like. In awe! Am not running Hyannis. My February Half is Half at the Hamptons in Hampton Beach, NH. But I am hoping to get around New England for different races!

EdithRevisited, Thank you for the encouragement! Also, what a great point that there are always more races! I think I burnt out a bit after high school and college cross country because it seemed as if there were always deadlines as to when I had to achieve things and coaches to answer to, etc. But now in adulthood, we all have the rest of our lives to meet our goals and no one to answer to but ourselves. I love the idea of setting goals and trying to meet them for the sheer pleasure of it, rather than any external pressure. Wheeee!